Gus Savage, Founder of the Chicago Citizen Newspaper, Congressman, Dies at 90
Gus Savage, the former congressman, civil rights activist and journalist, was his usual outspoken self on his 90th birthday party.
He talked about “corporations putting profits over people.” He reminded his guests about the importance of remembering that anything is possible.
And Savage was also gracious to the roughly 25 people who attended the party at his son Thomas Savage’s home in south suburban Olympia Fields, Ill.
“He said he was glad I was there,” recalled Ill. State Sen. Jacqueline Collins (16th Dist.).
On the following morning, Oct. 31, Savage died after suffering from a long illness.
“He was seriously ill but at the same time he was vigorous,” his son Tommy Savage said. “He liked to live life to its fullness. He fought the good fight. Even though we weren’t expecting it, he is in a better place.”
Throughout his life, Savage made his mark in politics, journalism and civil rights.
He expressed many of his views as the founding publisher of the Citizen Newspaper chain, which he started in 1965. The newspaper group, later named the Chicago Citizen Newspaper, is the largest chain of African-American owned newspapers in the Midwest.
“As a journalist, he was a trailblazer and catalyst for change,” recalled Collins, who worked for Savage as a reporter and editor in the 1970s. “He was a political genius and our standard bearer of truth."
It was Savage’s early tough background that influenced his personality, some of his friends said.
Born in Detroit, Mich. in 1925, Savage and his family moved to Chicago five years later, struggling financially in a tough South Side neighborhood.
After attending Wendell Phillips High School and winning local boxing championships, he entered the military.
Savage initially was recruited to be one of the famed Tuskegee Airmen but the military instead sent the Golden Glove boxing champion to the ring.
Savage wasn’t happy about how the military used him in the service, his son said.
He also experienced racism and segregation in the South.
However, Savage met the love of his life, in Eunice King, while visiting Birmingham, Ala.
The couple married and reared two children in Chicago, Thomas and Emma.
Savage attended Roosevelt University in Chicago, becoming lifelong friends with the late Chicago Mayor Harold Washington and businessman Dempsey Travis.
One of Savage's early publications, The American Negro, was among the first to print a photograph of the mutilated body of
Emmett Till, the Chicago teenager who was lynched in Mississippi in 1955.
Savage had said he ran image before Jet magazine and the Chicago Defender, which help spark national outcry over Till's murder.
Savage eventually worked for the Woodlawn Booster newspaper in Chicago. He left the newspaper after having editorial disagreements.
So, Savage started the Citizen Newspaper in 1965.
“He used the newspaper’s platform to tout black businesses,” Savage said.
He led campaigns against the Chicago political machine and touted equal housing.
The Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. said: “He was a town crier for justice.”
William Garth, Sr. who worked for Savage and now the owner of the Chicago Citizen Newspaper group, agreed.
“Everything he promoted was totally black,” recalled Garth, who sold advertisements for Savage. “If it wasn’t black, he didn’t have a lot to say about it.”
Savage would even criticize advertisers.
Garth recalled talking to Savage about his controversial views.
“He said my job is to write stories and your job is to sale ads,” Garth recalled.
His activism reached back to the 1940s. Savage worked on Henry Wallace’s 1948 Progressive Party campaign for U.S. president and picketed outside Chicago City Hall for housing opportunities for blacks.
By the 1960s, Savage was helping organize many of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s protests in Chicago.
Years later, he was a speaker at the Million Man March in Washington, D.C.
“I didn’t know who was more radical – him or Jesse [Jackson],” said Garth, who took over the Citizen papers in 1980.
Jackson, who is scheduled to speak at Savage’s funeral, along with Minister Louis Farrakhan, credited Savage with helping him throughout his career.
Savage’s passion for change led him to seek public office and early in his political career, he received mainstream support.
“He is a man of many talents who has grown in stature in his campaigns …” wrote the Chicago Sun-Times during Savage’s unsuccessful bid for Congress in 1970. “He is politically independent and he can be expected to work with all groups in the district for the best interests of the community.”
Savage posted the editorial on the front page of his own newspaper.
By the 1980, Savage stunned the local political establishment – winning the Democratic primary and general election for the U.S. House.
Chicago became the first U.S. city with three black congressmen with his successful bid, joining Washington, and Cardiss Collins in the House.
He served for six terms from January 1981 to January 1993.
“He was quick on his feet,” said Johnny Smith, Savage’s former campaign worker. “If you needed an answer, he could give you one. He paid attention to detail. He was thorough with keeping records. He was really sharp.”
During his reign as congressman of the 2nd District, he was chairman of the House Subcommittee on Economic Development and chairman of the Minority Business Braintrust of the Congressional Black Caucus. He also served on the House Committee on Small Business and on Public Works and Transportation and the subcommittee on Public Buildings and Grounds.
Savage is credited with helping minorities get a 5 percent set aside of military contracts and for getting the federal building in downtown Chicago named after Ralph Metcalfe, the former congressman and U.S. Olympian.
He used his congressional powers to temporarily halt the excavation and construction at the site of the African Burial Ground in New York City in 1992, where former slaves were buried, pending evaluation by the General Services Administration.
Savage also kept his hand in helping blacks get elected to office, particularly the South.
“He would go around barnstorming around the South with the Gus Busters and campaign for candidates,” recalled his son.
Savage was credited with being one of the forces who helped Washington win election as Chicago’s first black mayor.
But Savage also suffered from controversies.
He was accused of trying to force himself on a female Peace Corps worker in 1989, something he denied. Savage, however, wrote a letter of apology, stopping a House Ethics Committee from taking actions against the congressman.
During his bid for congress in 1992, he faced Mel Reynolds, claiming that “racist Jews” were donating to Reynolds. Reynolds, in turn, claimed that Savage orchestrated a drive-by shooting that injured Reynolds. Savage said Reynolds staged the shooting.
Savage lost the election by a 63% to 37% margin.
Savage continued to keep up with politics after he left office.
“He had a passion for politics and golf,” said Smith, who was not only Savage’s campaign worker, but also a longtime friend and associate.
“He was a noble, hardworking man who cared about his constituents and community,” said U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush, (1st Dist.). “He will be missed by many as he touched the lives of many.”
Aside from his son Tommy, Savage is also survived by his daughter in-law Drella Savage; a daughter Emma Savage-David and three grandchildren.
Visitation will be 12- 8 p.m. Friday at Mt. Calvary Baptist Church, 1257 W. 111th St., Chicago. A wake also will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, followed by services at the church.
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